Reviews
“Ive’s voice is as smooth as coffee liqueur and glides effortlessly over a Brazilian backdrop. Pure heaven”.
What’s On London Magazine (UK)
“Mendes, a striking Brazilian discovery in both audio and visual terms, made new friends with her contribution to the Brighton-based Mr. Bongo label’s Brazilian Beats Vol. 3 album, released back in March. Her self-titled and almost entirely self-written debut set is produced by distinguished English helmsman Robin Millar, best known for helping to create the sonic sophistication of Sade. It’s a similarly upmarket story here, on a collection of songs that whisper softly and sweetly of such olive-tinted, late-night sultriness. As Mendes says herself, the Nu-Brazil style that she represents is about far more that just The Girl From Ipanema, even if the music does exude that certain Gilberto-esque duskiness. She was born in Ceres to a farming family with Spanish, French, Portuguese and Brazilian heritage, and brings a cosmopolitan timbre to unmistakably measured Brazilian grooves. Mostly she sings in Portuguese, but converts seductively to English on Night Night (especially when she murmurs alluringly ‘you are the sexiest man I ever saw’) and on a winning cover of Chicago’s If You Leave Me Now. Irresistible first to last”.
HMV Choice magazine (UK)
“Dubbed the Brazilian Sade, Ive Mendes has already made a mark for herself in her home country, Spain and Asia. Her debut album features a collection of love songs in both English and Portuguese. The combination of her sultry personality and an incredible talent for writing and singing will surely win her plenty of fans over here too”.
Hello Magazine (UK)
“This statuesque Brazilian diva is already big news in most parts of the world, and her debut, produced by Robin Millar, the chap behind Sade, is her attempt to crack Britain. This is summery, sultry and sensual stuff. Perfect, dare we say, for the bedroom stereo”. ****
OK Magazine (UK)
“More summer Brazilian sounds, this time care of the sweetly soulful voice of Ive Mendes. Accompanied by a tender mix of bossanova beats, slinky acoustic guitar and airy percussion. Ive is being described as the ‘Brazilian Sade’, this is aided by the fact that she has Sade and Everything But The Girl producer Robin Millar embracing her gentle, seductive cooing with his breezy production sound. The fact the songs are a beautiful bilingual blend of English and Portuguese, only adds to her appeal. The cover will leave you feeling hot (and sticky) and the music paints romantic pictures of peaceful and serene summer nights. The songs sung in Portuguese have a more sexually alluring quality; in particular ‘Nao Vou Fugir’ is a waft of classic Brasilia that wouldn’t be out of place on Bebel Gilberto’s ‘Tan to Tempo’ album. The label describe this as Nu-Brazil but to me ‘ belo”.
Funk & Breaks Magazine (UK)
“From Brazil arrives Ive Mendes, a spectacular artist capable of mixing tradition, Soul and Pop. This is an album that you will be passionate about”.
Elle Magazine (SPAIN)
“A Sensual Pop Jazz Diva”
MMTA (Asia)
Niemilosiernie dlugie, nieprzyzwoicie zgrabne… konczyny. Ponetne, mocno zaokraglone… oczy, udany cover hitu Chicago “If You Leave Me Now” to niejedyne walory wykonawczyni plazowej soulosamby. Z ponadprzecietnym wyczuciem rytmu i blogoslawienstwem dla uszu przyzwyczajonych do wielkomiejskiego zgielku. Plazowej, bo beztroskiej, radosnej, ale jednoczesnie tajemniczej i pelnej niedomowien…
Ive Mendes wynalazl Robin Millar. Tworca i kreator sukcesow muzycznych Sade. Ive rowniez momentami przynudza – o, sorry – przedluza “muzyczna delektacje”. Ale robi to z rownie ogromnym wdziekiem.
4-Art (Poland)
Parisons sur l’emergence d’une nouvlelle Sade made in Brazil. Du moins si on se fie a son Pygmalion, Robin Millar; guitariste, producteur et arrangeur de Sade et Everything But The Girl. Prise en main par le label de Brighton, haut lieu de l’hedonisme britannique et fief de Fatboy Slim, elle possede ce petit je-ne-sais-quoi de cool, entre la bossa et le lounge, entre Morcheeba et Tom Jobin, qui clique instantenement. Jouant la carte de la sensualite, qui lui colle manifestement a la peau, son timbre, les melodies et les rythmes emprutent manifestement a Sade (Natural High) et meme Bjork (Afternoon), C’est tout bon, partticulierement cette reprise de Chicago, “If You Leave Me Now”. Nombreux fans de Bet.& Stef, de Sade et de sensualite a l’aura latine, essayez! Vous l’adopterez.
Journal de M&L & Journal de QC (France)
Ive Mendes acompanada por suaves ritmos brasilenos esta deliciosa cantante que podemos situar entre Sade, Norah Jones y Bebel Gilberto, interpreta sus composiciones que constituyen un torrente de sensaciones a medio camino entre Brasil y los mejores arreglos del nuevo soul.
Top Musica Magazine (Spain)
La sutilidad y sugerencia lo impregan todo.Su preciosa voz se integra en una musica que se desarrolla entre la bossa nova y el sonido del pop/soul que caracteriza a Sade. No obstante, se propone un interesante viaje musical lleno de frescura y caliez bajo la creacion de atmosferas tranquilas. Un precioso disco que augura una carrera exitosa de esta brasilena en el dificil mundo de la musica.
Musica Magazine (Spain)
Las comparaciones com Sade no escassam cuando se trata de etiquetar a artistas que juegam de uma naneira u outra con los sonidos dos melosos del soul,como Maxwell and Gabriela Anders…Lo caso de Ive es distinto. De Ipanema a Londres ,una digna sucessora de Sade.
Shangay Magazine (Spain)
Un critico dicia que la voz de Ive Mendes es perfeita para una vinoteca de Kensington.
Diario de Navarra (Spain)
Afortunadamente ,Brasil continua siendo punto de referencia ineludible en cuanto a tradicion musical se refiere.Durante anos ha sido el espejo donde se miraban artistas de todo el mundo latino,con creadores de la talla de Gilberto Gil ,Caetano Veloso o Vinicius de Moraes marcando el compas.Hoy en dia ,esta tradicion cultural continua dando musicos de excepcional calidad como Otto,Daniela Mercury o esta Ive Mendes ,quien en su disco de presentacion mundial recoge lo mejor de la musica brasilena para mezclarlo con aires cercanos de Sade o Norah Jones.Una delicia.
MUXXIC Magazine (Spain)
